Okay, from the many years of watching national sporting broadcasts, I've learned one thing: They don't really know the teams well. They state the most obvious facts, mix up players, mess up last names, etc...

My question from watching the game on CBS, how the heck do you pronounce Franzen's last name? According to Wikipedia [which is always right (sarcasm)], it's Franzen with the "a" almost sounding like "on". This is how I and everyone I know have been saying it for the past five years. However, the play-by-play tonight kept saying Franzen as if the "a" sounded like "an".
WHICH IS THE RIGHT WAY?!?!

Also, I looked up that interview (Two for the Fun of it) where he introduces himself. I'm starting to second guess myself because I can't really hear if he says one or the other.

Edited by MissyLKS8, 21 March 2010 - 12:26 AM.

Hit it hard in Royal Oak... but I'll see you all in Detroit. Friday 11am.

Pav's going to dance for Hank. -Osgood on Zed's birthdayI love the dark meat. -Homer on turkeyHey, is that Journey? OOH, WHAT A STOP BY OSGOOD!! Hey, that IS Journey! - Steve Dangle

"I don't care what my tickets says, Lady. Why should I move my seat for you, 45 minutes late with your non-Red Wings apparel, to sit behind the glass here with your little friend who just asked who #5 is?"

My father's first language is Swedish and when watching the games with him, he always pronounces Franzen as, "Frahn-zaeyn". There is an accent over the "e", which I also have in my last name, effecting the pronunciation. The funny thing is, in February, I was at a tequila bar in San Jose, on the night before the SJ/Red Wings game, and Franzen walked in and sat next to me at the bar. Admittedly being a little tipsy, I totally remember boasting to him that we had the same "e with an accent over it" type of last name, and asked him if Franzen was pronounced "Frahn-zaeyn", which he adamantly contended. We then had a *random as hell* conversation about the band The Offspring.

My father's first language is Swedish and when watching the games with him, he always pronounces Franzen as, "Frahn-zaeyn". There is an accent over the "e", which I also have in my last name, effecting the pronunciation. The funny thing is, in February, I was at a tequila bar in San Jose, on the night before the SJ/Red Wings game, and Franzen walked in and sat next to me at the bar. Admittedly being a little tipsy, I totally remember boasting to him that we had the same "e with an accent over it" type of last name, and asked him if Franzen was pronounced "Frahn-zaeyn", which he adamantly contended. We then had a *random as hell* conversation about the band The Offspring.

My father's first language is Swedish and when watching the games with him, he always pronounces Franzen as, "Frahn-zaeyn". There is an accent over the "e", which I also have in my last name, effecting the pronunciation.

I'm guessing your father is from the south of Sweden. That makes a world of difference.

Listen at 0.10 for the pronounciation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wF42A6pei7o

The a sound is very similar to the english u sound in under.The é is pronounced like ear without the r, obviously.

The a is short and the é is long.

NHL broadcasters really butcher all the Swedes names though. Except for maybe Douglas Murray, but the Swedish announcers will make a mess out of his name instead so it evens out.

My father's first language is Swedish and when watching the games with him, he always pronounces Franzen as, "Frahn-zaeyn". There is an accent over the "e", which I also have in my last name, effecting the pronunciation. The funny thing is, in February, I was at a tequila bar in San Jose, on the night before the SJ/Red Wings game, and Franzen walked in and sat next to me at the bar. Admittedly being a little tipsy, I totally remember boasting to him that we had the same "e with an accent over it" type of last name, and asked him if Franzen was pronounced "Frahn-zaeyn", which he adamantly contended. We then had a *random as hell* conversation about the band The Offspring.

NorCalGrl: WOW! And The Offspring?! Ha, that's comical. Anything interesting to say on that topic?

Everybody: Thanks for the response. Some odd reason I didn't think to ask my friend who lives in Sweden either.

Hit it hard in Royal Oak... but I'll see you all in Detroit. Friday 11am.

Pav's going to dance for Hank. -Osgood on Zed's birthdayI love the dark meat. -Homer on turkeyHey, is that Journey? OOH, WHAT A STOP BY OSGOOD!! Hey, that IS Journey! - Steve Dangle

"I don't care what my tickets says, Lady. Why should I move my seat for you, 45 minutes late with your non-Red Wings apparel, to sit behind the glass here with your little friend who just asked who #5 is?"

I don't know the correct Swedish pronunciation but everyone I've ever heard talk about him (except for the occasional retarded national broadcast commentator) calls him "Fron-zen" which I like better than "Fran-zen" which sounds like you have a bad cold or a New York accent.

EDIT: So judging from the grammar rules of you Swedes and knowledgeable people, it's actually pronounced:

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I don't know the correct Swedish pronunciation but everyone I've ever heard talk about him (except for the occasional retarded national broadcast commentator) calls him "Fron-zen" which I like better than "Fran-zen" which sounds like you have a bad cold or a New York accent.

EDIT: So judging from the grammar rules of you Swedes and knowledgeable people, it's actually pronounced:

Yo-HAHN Fron-ZUN? Is that right?

Listen to the clip posted in this thread, that's the correct swedish pronounciation. it's mostly the "e" sound you yanks have to work on

But yet in saying that the correct version of Fedorov is Fjådoroff...and not feddorovv.. and datsjuk not datsyuk... if you're going to go from the russian alphabet and pronounciation...